Now I say it's misleading in that most people when they hear the term volunteer, think they are unpaid. They are not. By law, any for profit group, organization ect must pay their people. They can't use unpaid volunteer if they are for profit. And Gencon as well as TD must pay income tax.
Now someone will argue that there is no real cash exchange. But that doesn't really matter, it's based on the value exchange of goods, cash or services. For example TD gives $250 stipdend, a hotel room shared with other volunteers, convention badge, limited-edition Participation Tokens, limited-edition volunteer-only tokens as well as other swag. If you figure up the value of what they give, it should be around $500 total, which equates to about $12.00/hour. Might be more but not going into the math.
Now Gencon also uses "Event Team" which replaced their volunteer system 3- 4 years ago, basically the same thing.
Should Gencon or a group fail to get enough people to run the events, they should know in advance, there are still options, inside and out. Put out the word to the fans begging for help, offer better incentives, or ect. Or outside options is hire temp workers from places like the following.
Temp Staffing of Indiana, Express Employment Professionals, Indiana Staffing Services.
These places are not idea, yes,. But in a fix, you could hire some temp workers and give them some real basic training that will allow them to work, and get the events staffed.
There is a positive trend emerging in the data. The positivity rate (the red line) is falling steadily. Essentially it means that we are doing more and more testing, and fewer and fewer of those tests are coming back positive. Also, if you look at Europe, which is a few weeks ahead of us, the numbers have come way down as well. A glimmer of hope!
I’ve cancelled my events, my hotel reservation and had my badge refunded so I no longer am really concerned if there is a Gen Con in 2020, but I feel compelled to point out that the AEI is the American Enterprise Institute, a decidedly pro business organization so they have an agenda. They are not a public health or medical organization. The graph is missing any of the statistical information that would allow you to judge it’s quality, and there is no way to judge their data collection methodology. It may be right, it may be wrong but there is no way to know from the graph as presented.
While the national numbers may have some application towards having tens of thousands of out of state visitors coming into town, Indiana is still showing fairly steady numbers. Aside from a pair of downward spikes, the rate at which new cases are being identified daily hasn't really budged since late April.
Understanding how many new cases might be coming into town is one thing, but the town itself is still producing them on its own. Of course, as I myself have pointed out, those numbers are lagging indicators; the results now are reflective of the actions or inaction of a week or two back.
And while local/national/global trends are worth keeping an eye on, the lack of widespread testing (and the accuracy of those tests being questioned, both false positives and false negatives) makes 'good news' hard to believe. At least this chart has a rolling average that would smooth out the usual weekend drops that show up in a lot of reporting (and somehow still seem to surprise people this far in).
But it just takes a few cases cropping up for things to start getting out of hand again. We can post all the good news in the world today, and it won't mean anything if a super-spreader incident occurs a week or two before showtime.
According to this site: https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/worldwide-graphs/#europe-usa-cases
European and US cases are actually running remarkably similarly, though several countries (Russia, I'm looking at you) have only recently begun reporting what seem to be remotely sane numbers (previously there weren't any COVID deaths, just a ton of oddly specific non-flu pneumonia related deaths, by my understanding).
Granted, Europe is roughly twice the population of the US, but comparing immense populations across entire continents is going to run into a few snags getting to an apples to apples level.
Sorry to be a stick in the mud, but while I dearly hope for good news, it's hard not to see apparent gaping holes in the contrasts.
Edit: actually, digging deeper, forget the state numbers. Marion County has seen 100-300 new positive cases reported daily since mid April. And the most recent numbers (the last three days) have not been good.
I intend to go to Indianapolis whether there is an official con or not, play some board games and have some fun. However it just occurred to me that games, events or even the entire convention center may require masks be worn and I for one cannot abide wearing a mask. I wont wear a mask and will simple not attend anything that requires them. I am polite about it, their games their con their rules, I just wont participate in those things and find my own fun that is mask free
Looking at the internet and society at large I can foresee some real conflicts surrounding the issue of masks. Players upset that others are not wearing a mask, loud conflicts between mask wearers and those not wearing masks. shoving matches in the dealers hall when some mask wearer gets upset that someone not wearing a mask is standing to close to them etcetera.
regardless of what GENCON policy is on masks and or social distancing I hope it is made clear to all and some forethought is given on how to de-escalate any conflicts that arise.
Even the most ambitious, optimistic, version of the narrative would almost certainly have a hard-requirement for masks.
And I, for one, would have as much pity for someone who got uppity about not wanting to wear a mask as I would for someone who wanted to attend the con without a badge, which is to say, none at all. :-)
Humans are quarrelsome animals and I just hope someone is thinking about these things
my only real suggestion is to have a lot of signage in large clear and to the point print stating the rules and be prepared for a much greater amount of arguments to deal with then a normal con
Well, one thing:
while a mask requirement is probable enforceable in a hotel space paid for by the con just like badges, it wont be enforceable in said hotels public spaces
At which point the GenCon Mask Patrol ends up with authority both in the semi-public and rented spaces to enforce a mask requirement. Actual public areas (like the streets around the food trucks) are certainly murkier, but you might even have Indy requiring it, at which point it would be a IMPD thing to deal with there.
I know we're not allowed to mention other Cons but Spiel Essen just cancelled for 2020. Read this before it's deleted
The only thing I have to say about the "mandatory mask requirement" is this:
I'm partially deaf. I wear hearing aids, but in an area with multiple conversations going at the same time, it's almost impossible for me to understand everything that is going on without being able to lipread the person I'm talking to. With everyone wearing a mask, not only will I not know what is being said, but since directional hearing is shite, it'll be extremely difficult to know WHO is talking.
Masks also tend to go around the ear with elastic. That raises more difficulties. That elastic tends to narrow the ear canal my hearing aids go into, making things even more difficult. Lastly, which side of the hearing aid the elastic goes around is a problem. It's a personal issue, but an issue none the less. If it goes over the aid, it pinches the hearing tube closed. If it goes behind the aid, the elastic pulls the aid from behind my ear, pulling the aid completely out 7 times out of 10, and dropping it to the floor for me, or someone else to step on.
I feel ostracized enough in a crowd by needing to ask people to repeat themselves multiple times and having to apologize profusely because I can't hear them, on a good day. Add in the effect masks will have, and you might as well tell the deaf guy to stay at home.
I _suspect_ that in the struggle to reconcile "accessibility" versus "public health", accessibility is going to be the side that loses out (the needs of the many and all that, and it really is a "need" rather than just a nice-to-have or something like that).
:-(
Oldcurmudgeonstudios: You make some good points. I know some masks are being made with clear plastic over the mouth to facilitate lip reading, but they’re not exactly in widespread use.
I have a suggestion that might help your own mask wearing comfort. My wife got me a mesh baseball cap with the brand name of Sweaty. This cap has a button on each side that you can hook the elastic band onto. It takes the pressure off your ears and is much more comfortable. Or if you sew, you could probably DIY with a cap of your own.
I don't see the value in going several layers deep into speculation.
Now we need to solve the hypothetical shoving match which occurred because of hypothetical policy in place at a convention that might hypothetically take place? It's like we're in the movie Inception.
If the convention takes place at all, they will announce what public health practices are to be used. These rules may not even be up to Gen Con. The city and state, not to mention the ICC will have guidelines in place. And those guidelines would be based on the situation at that time (ie in July/Aug). They will not be based on the world in May.
Obviously, none of this will help the underlying issue of not being able to lip read, but a different mask might help lessen the issues with losing directional hearing caused by the elastic around your ears.